Shinrei's Self-Detonation

Cold Chill shot up my spine and spread throughout my body in an instant; every cell screamed for danger!

Run! Now! Immediately! Right now!

This was no opponent she could face head-on! The oppressive aura, the near-perfect stealth and reappearance, all indicated that the opponent was an elite Ninja whose experience and Strength far surpassed her own.

If you go head-to-head, you'll be completely defeated in just a few moves!

Her only chance of survival lay in the woods where some traps had just been laid, in her familiarity with the terrain, in creating chaos and delaying the enemy, and then escaping towards the camp!

In a flash, her thoughts were made up. Shinrei forced herself to calm down, even adjusting her breathing behind her mask. She didn't act immediately, but looked up at the enemy on the tree trunk and spoke in a tentative and submissive tone, deliberately softening her voice.

"If I said... please let me go, you definitely wouldn't agree, would you?"

Sarutobi Sasuke, dressed as a Minamoto Ninja, let out a low, pleasant chuckle, as if enjoying the futile struggle of his prey before its death. He shifted to a more relaxed posture, leaning against the tree trunk, his exposed eyes crinkling into a smile.

"Isn't that a given?" His tone was flippant, his gaze sweeping over Shinrei's slender figure and delicate face with an almost tangible intensity. "Besides... it's such a waste for someone so beautiful to die so easily."

He leaned forward slightly, offering a suggestion with a mocking malice. "Don't worry, little girl, I won't kill you. How about... you just come back with me obediently? I promise I'll make sure you suffer less."

Hearing the undisguised nausea in those words, Shinrei's last shred of hope vanished.

She sighed silently, her eyes suddenly turning sharp as ice.

Now that things have come to this, the only way to survive is to escape, heading towards the location of the Taira, hoping that Takuichi will arrive in time.

So let's begin.

I'll risk everything and start my escape!

Her left hand had already quietly gripped a Smoke Bomb and several Kunai.

The Minamoto Ninja stared at her, then charged in an instant!

Now!

"Bang--!"

Thick white smoke exploded without warning beneath her feet, instantly engulfing her figure and spreading rapidly in all directions!

Almost simultaneously, she threw out Kunai, blocking any possible route the enemy might take.

Like an arrow released from a bow, Shinrei, relying on her memory of the terrain and the full burst of her own speed, flew towards the first trap area she had set up.

Her figure blurred into a black line in the dark forest, so fast that it almost left an afterimage.

"Oh? Not bad, not bad." Sarutobi Sasuke's slightly surprised voice came from the smoke.

Kunai, he rose like a ghost, easily dodging the attack, his gaze instantly locking onto the direction Shinrei was fleeing.

"But that's what makes it interesting!" He chuckled softly, and without any apparent movement, his figure seemed to blend into the night wind, chasing after them at a breathtaking speed.

That speed was even faster than when Shinrei unleashed her full power.

Shinrei heard the sound of wind rushing past her from behind; her heart pounded, but her mind remained unusually clear.

She deliberately chose a circuitous route, constantly changing direction, sometimes crouching and crawling through low bushes, sometimes leaping up on slippery rocks, trying to use the complex terrain to create distance.

At the same time, she was deliberately leading her pursuers into the area where she had set up Explosive Tags and Tripwires!

"Call out--!"

A nearly invisible Chakra Threads was precisely triggered by her toe!

"Boom--!"

The Explosive Tag buried at the tree roots to the side and rear suddenly exploded. The Kakkō and shockwave were particularly dazzling in the darkness, and broken wood chips and dirt flew everywhere.

However, the expected signs of the pursuit being thwarted did not materialize.

Sarutobi Sasuke's figure flashed past the edge of the explosion's Kakkō like a phantom, his speed barely decreasing.

He seemed to have anticipated the trap's location and precisely avoided the explosion.

"First one!" Shinrei gritted her teeth and continued running, triggering another Tripwire trap!

The poisoned Kunai a tricky angle!

Sarutobi Sasuke merely tilted his head slightly, Kunai grazed past his mask, embedding itself in the tree trunk behind him.

He even had time to remark, "The trap is well-set, but unfortunately it won't stop me."

Shinrei's heart sank. She had underestimated the strength of her opponent.

These traps, which would be enough to threaten an ordinary Chunin, were completely ineffective against this enemy.

"Boom! Boom!"

Two more explosions followed! Shinrei had used most of the traps she had set up to create a chaotic explosion zone in an attempt to block or at least slow down the enemy.

Thick smoke billowed, Kakkō flickered, and the forest was a scene of utter devastation.

Taking advantage of the situation, Shinrei hid behind a dense thicket of bushes, held her breath, suppressed her Chakra to the lowest level, and tried to use the environment to conceal herself, waiting for the chaos caused by the explosion to subside before looking for an opportunity to escape.

A few seconds passed.

The echoes of the explosion gradually faded, leaving only the crackling sound of burning wood.

There were no footsteps chasing after them.

"Is it here?" That nightmarish voice rang out, almost right behind her ear!

Shinrei turned around in horror, only to see a blurry black shadow rushing towards her with overwhelming force!

She didn't even have time to make a proper recovery move before she was kicked away.

"Bang--!"

An overwhelming force slammed into her chest!

"Snap!"

A clear cracking sound rang out!

The excruciating pain instantly overwhelmed her senses!

She flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the trunk of a large tree before rolling to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dead leaves and dust.

"Cough...!" A sweet taste rose in his throat, followed by the metallic taste of blood.

Shinrei struggled to get up.

But the man had already reached her and stomped on her calf, breaking it.

"Ah!!"

The audience.

"Ah--!" Daimyo's Wife Wakako, also cried out in surprise, but then her voice stopped abruptly as if she had been choked.

She gripped her husband's arm tightly, her nails almost digging into his flesh.

A suppressed gasp and gasps of surprise rose from the audience.

Everyone could see it.

That wasn't an injury simulated by Genjutsu!

The clear sound of bones cracking, the face turning as pale as paper in an instant, the uncontrollable trembling and cold sweat caused by the excruciating pain... it was all real!

Even Hashirama Senju Madara Uchiha in the front row instantly sharpened their eyes, their gazes shooting like lightning towards Izuna on the stage.

Only when they saw that Izuna was still sitting there calmly did they restrain themselves from making any immediate moves, but their brows furrowed deeply.

On stage, Hinata Rei, who played Shinrei, felt a series of excruciating pains in her right calf that made her vision go black.

The pain was so acute; the nausea from being kicked in the chest surged up her throat, almost threatening to break her will.

A deep fear gripped her heart.

I want to escape...

Amidst the excruciating pain and dizziness, she glanced back towards the side of the stage, towards the safe backstage area.

Then, her gaze froze.

In the shadows at the edge of the stage, Yamanaka Harukawa, playing Kiyotsune, was staring intently at her.

Those eyes, which always held a clear smile, were now filled with terror, anger, and tears that were about to overflow.

He was being held down firmly by Uchiha Hinata playing Atsumori, and Uchiha Takuma, who was playing Takuichi, on either side to prevent him from actually rushing onto the stage in his excitement.

Hinata and Takuma both looked grim, their eyes filled with undisguised worry and tension.

Even the eldest daughter of the Main Family, Akari, whom she had never known how to get along with, was at the edge of the stage, watching her with concern.

Rei looked at Harukawa's tear-filled eyes, at Hinata and Takuma's tense profiles, and at the worried gazes of countless audience members below the stage...

In Setsuna, it was as if an electric current pierced through her confusion and fear.

So that's how it is...

She suddenly understood.

Now I understand why, in the script, Shinrei didn't choose to continue running away or hiding after her leg was broken.

Because there are people she must protect behind her.

There is a Kiyotsune who is happy because of her, angry because she is bullied, and cries because she is hurt.

There are Sukemori, Koremori, Guo Sheng, Tokuko.

When she falls, when this powerful and terrifying enemy has dealt with her, who will be her next target?

It was a campsite just a stone's throw away.

They are the people she wants to protect.

Now, the only thing we can do, the only way to stop this monster from threatening the important people behind her...

The only option is to keep him.

At all costs.

A strange power surged from the deepest part of my heart, instantly overwhelming the physical pain and mental fear.

Hinata Rei, no, at this moment she is Higa Shinrei.

Slowly, she used her arms to support her aching body, dragging her broken leg, and leaned against the tree trunk behind her, little by little.

She raised her head and looked at the Minamoto Ninjas not far away, who were calmly watching their prey struggle for its last breath.

The blood and dust on her face could not conceal the sudden, desperate flame that ignited in her eyes.

Sarutobi Sasuke met her gaze and his heart skipped a beat. The words he had been about to say to the little girl were instantly swallowed back.

That look in her eyes... that can't be faked.

He knew he had to handle the situation from here on out.

So, following the script, he continued speaking in that cat-and-mouse tone.

"What's wrong? Can't run anymore?" He tilted his head, his gaze sweeping over the mess of trap marks around him. "Ugh, so many traps left, this is really troublesome... This has taken too long."

He slowly raised his right hand, and Short Sword gleaming with a cold light appeared in his hand without him even noticing.

"I'd rather just finish you off." His tone turned cold, filled with murderous intent. "Going back with your head wouldn't be bad either."

Shinrei watched him approach, watching the cold moonlight reflected off the Short Sword.

Her left hand, very slowly but firmly, reached for the last Ninja Tool Pouch at her waist.

She collapsed to the ground again, as if she had lost all will to fight.

The Minamoto Ninja seemed to be too anxious and underestimating his opponent to notice her subtle movements.

Just as he bent down, intending to deliver the final blow...

She lunged forward, displaying the remaining dozen or so Explosive Tags in her hand, and detonated them.

At the same time.

The Land of Wind.

In a deserted corner, a figure suddenly appeared out of thin air and crashed to the ground.

He raised his head, squinted, and although his face was covered in blood and his arms hung limply at his sides, he was exhausted, but he still managed to stand up unsteadily by sheer willpower.

"Where... is this place?"